Arsenal were forced to make a substitution in the 25th minute of the first half against West Ham when Ben White suffered an injury. However, when Martin Zvimendi came off the bench to replace the defender and Declan Rice moved to right-back, Manchester United icon Gary Neville did not agree with the decision.
Zvimendi has been away from the team and Miles Lewis-Skelly has been in form since being recalled to the team in midfield. Neville had expected Arsenal’s youngster to move back to right-back, despite defender Cristian Mosquera sitting on the bench and having never played a single minute of football for Arsenal.
But when Rice was shifted to right-back in place of White with Arsenal playing with 10 men, Neville was adamant the Englishman would not stay there.
“He can’t put Declan Rice there,” said the Sky Sports commentator. “I have to say if you go in strong with a really solid block, it’s easily prevented. He swung his legs out in a pretty weak way. You’re asking for trouble.”
Even with Zvimendi on the pitch, Neville was left stunned when it was revealed that the Spanish star would be joined by Luis Skelly and Ebelesi Eze in midfield, with Rice joining the back four.
“Declan Rice will stay at right-back, which I’m really surprised about,” Neville added. “I have just heard that there is no evidence that Myles Lewis-Skelly has ever played at right-back, but it is a big decision to remove Declan Rice from the center of the pitch.”
Fellow commentator Peter Drury explained that while Mikel Arteta would probably want a player with more established ball-playing ability at right-back rather than Mosquera, he still feels Neville should have kept Rice in his original position.
“If I was a Man City fan, I would be more interested in this moment than in the first 10 minutes,” he continued. “As a Spurs fan I’m a bit worried, but West Ham are definitely improving.
“Things have changed in this game. Arsenal’s midfield is open and the right side is not fixed. Obviously, if I were Mikel Arteta, I would think about moving Rice back into midfield.”
Leandro Trossard hit the bar in the first half, but West Ham gradually gained momentum over the opening 45 minutes, with David Raya having to come to the rescue after Tati Castellanos’ powerful header.
